


Across the Oceans

by ANarrativeCloud



Category: Naruto, One Piece
Genre: BAMF!Naruto, Crossover, Gen, Naruto x One Piece, written before ch600 of Naruto
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-11
Updated: 2016-05-11
Packaged: 2018-06-07 18:37:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6819496
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ANarrativeCloud/pseuds/ANarrativeCloud
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Two years after the Fourth Shinobi War, reconstruction and reaffiliations with countries had been completed. Naruto achieved his dream of being Hokage, but some things just don’t go as planned, do they? Some Marine Admiral wishes for them to join their World Government, and a representative must be chosen to judge whether or no they would join. Oh and some boy with a Straw Hat is trying to recruit our favourite blonde for his nakama. “What trouble are you in this time, Naruto?” Sasuke said exasperatedly.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It had been a fairly _normal_ day.

Well, as normal as any normal day a ninja could have. Which… isn’t _normal_ at all.

The agenda was _simple._ Go to the Conference. Attend and contribute to the Conference. Leave the Conference. Eat. Journey home. Sleep.

But _nothing was ever simple with Naruto._ Sasuke concluded. It didn’t take him _that_ long to get to that conclusion. Actually, he had stated that a few hours after meeting and talking–okay _arguing—_ with the blonde. The guy was the only one who managed to get a rise out of him or even make him talk without him actually asking him anything when they were genin. It was infuriating.

They were just about to go to the Conference at Land of Rice when a messenger bird was sent to the nearest Konoha Patrol. It seemed that the Conference had gained another topic on its agenda, but the Rokudaime refused to disclose the information to him. He wasn’t really disappointed, oh _of course not._ He was Uchiha Sasuke after all. _Only_ being the said Rokudaime’s _best friend_ and _second-in-command_ didn’t make him bitter about being in the dark about… whatever it is the Conference had put up. Really, he _wasn’t._

The Conference was something similar to the Five Kage Summit, but this had several nobles and feudal Lords attending. It had been an agreement between the whole Elemental Nations to have an annual meeting in different minor countries to help stabilize and to not renew hatred and seed several things like such. The civilian nobles were included because their resources and land were very helpful to the construction of houses for the unable—otherwise, they would’ve just been in the way, what with their riches apparently. Several emissaries from remote countries like Moon Country, Spring Country, which weren’t much affected by the rampage of the Juubi due to their relative distance and the ninjas who refused to let the Juubi do whatever it wanted, was also present.

The council talked about the economy, trading routes, agreements and the like. It had never been Sasuke’s forte as he had never really studied it in the first place; Naruto, on the other hand, had spent _months—_ if you include Kage Bunshin— maybe years and had apparently inherited his father’s inclination to the area and went around good-naturedly leading people on and kept on presenting highly unorthodox but undeniably effective methods to deal with problems. The blonde’s unpredictability carried over to politics rather than just the fights that could be won by brute force. Naruto had been truly exceptional in the field. Sasuke would never say that to his face though. The blonde’s ego was inflated enough as it is. Not that _he_ could talk.

It had been almost a year— eleven months and two days, but who was counting?— since the end of the war and everything was going smoothly. The funds that were directed to the military effort had been now focused to solving poverty everywhere and supporting everyone. However, due to the loss of crops due to the focus on the war, the food supplies had been limited to faster growing plant and wild animals, and the animals too were starting to become sparse. The lands which were next to useless when handled by greedy nobles had been petitioned for the use of farmers. There had been several disputes from the shinobi forces since the funds for the ninjas were reduced very much… at least that was how he understood it. War veterans were now reduced to farmers and fisherman, potters and other things, with most of them hating being useless. The discussion lasted much of the day, having recesses every four hours.

Naruto had asked him to pay attention to the discussion, but why in _heathens_ did they need to talk about _horses_ and _their favourite dishes_ at a _conference?_ He didn’t even want to ask. He supposed he needed to sit soon, he felt the stiffness in his legs already. Standing with alertness for long periods of time did that to you. He didn’t even know himself why he stood so stiffly, it was just out of habit. He didn’t want to move from his position and look like an unprofessional ANBU that he and Neji were supposed to be the role models. Oh, they (namely, the guards. Akatsuchi, Kankuro, Temari, Darui, C, Chojuro and some others he never bothered learn before) were hidden behind a curtain—reminiscent of the Five Kage Summit—but he _refused_ to relax. The war might be over— _finally_ fucking over, those stupid clansmen of his had actually _died_ once and for all— but there were still threats to be addressed. Iwa—some of them at least— for example still hadn’t managed to quell their hatred for the Yellow Flash and tended to attack Naruto, only to be _laughed at_ (way to soothe their hostility) and sent away with a slap on the wrist. Really, Naruto should be less understanding.

Speaking of Iwa, Oonoki the Fence Sitter—the previous Tsuchikage—had died _honorably_ —tch, honor, they weren’t those foolish samurai—in the battlefield. He had met his end explosively, bringing a hefty amount of Zetsu clones with him, and earned him a mark of awe in history. Kurotsuchi—as unwilling as she was—had been inaugurated a month before Naruto was. She was the only capable Tsuchikage under the circumstances and electing Akatsuchi… was well… just stupid. She had grudgingly taken the hat, but was secretly honored to have been chosen. Her arrogance somewhat dimmed, and she became somewhat tame after the war. Losing a parent—his or her identity was never disclosed, the Yondaime Tsuchikage had demanded privacy— was a big hit on her emotional state but it made her stronger. Naruto’s rant about how many people became a Kage before he himself became what was annoying and knowing details like that was somewhat… creepy. It only served to feed his confidence about Konoha’s spy network. It was good to know that even after Jiraiya’s death, his networks were still in place—it was either Ino or Shikamaru who handled it now.

The Mizukage, Terumi Mei, was as she was normally, still hunting for husbands. Sasuke shivered. She had hit on _him._ It was mortifying. Sure, having fangirls throw themselves at his feet was… _still_ creepy, but having someone _really_ try to make him so… ugh. Not even going there. A good four—admittedly very violent—years without them had dulled his mental shields about their horror. He sincerely didn’t want to experience that again. Thankfully, Naruto had heard from is informants that Terumi was finally focusing on one man and would settle soon.

The Kazekage. Gaara. Sasuke didn’t resent the redhead for the beating he took before, in fact, he respected him. Gaara was still somewhat wary of him guarding Naruto, but respected Naruto’s decision. Trust was still strained, but that was a common occurrence for him now. He really shouldn’t have left Konoha. Kami knows how much he hurt everyone by his departure and constant rejection…

The Raikage, Killer A, was… still as violent as ever. Nothing much to say about that. He still held bitterness about Sasuke attempting to hand Killer Bee over to Akatsuki but other than that, they played civilly.

The Hokage. Uzumaki Naruto. No, he was called Namikaze Naruto now. It wasn’t as if Naruto didn’t wanted to be called Uzumaki anymore, it was just the legalities and red tape of everything that made him annoyed. Naruto stubbornly wanted to keep both of his names and always _always_ introduced himself as such. But after a while, with everyone calling him Namikaze-san instead of the previous Uzumaki-san, he relented.

Konoha’s council was fine and rebuilt, having the clan heads retire and give their positions to their respective heirs. The process was stifling, the council members were tired of war but they couldn’t _all_ just leave at the same time. Thus happened the long transitional period. He himself was one of the last ones who sat at the council’s monthly meetings. Given that he was the last Uchiha and the second son of the previous ( _traitorous_ He internally spat. He _hated_ traitors. Including himself.) clan head, and his loyalty, while not completely, was somehow acknowledged with the Hokage’s final say, he was rightfully the clan head of the near non-existent Uchiha.

Anyway, he digressed. The Conference was somewhat tame, intense gazes and expectant stares being the most violent actions, fortunately.

The civilian nobles were somewhat sweaty and considering they were in Land of Rice, which was one of the northern countries, it was the temperature was considerably cold. Were they nervous about something?

The people around the table stood up, signaling that another recess was issued. He shunshin’d a few steps behind Naruto and made his presence known. Naruto grinned and nodded in acknowledgement.

“Ne, Sasuke…” Naruto called cordially, his grin betraying his tone.

“Hokage-sama?” Sasuke replied formally, out of sheer protocol.

“ _At ease_ you idiot. Stop being so stuffy. How many times do I have to say that?”

“As many times as needed, _sir._ ” He stressed the last part teasingly.

“Now you’re just being mean.” He pouted.

“What was it you were going to ask?” He asked annoyedly, taking the Raven—the blonde’s humor was annoying— mask off his face, hooking it to his belt.

“Do you know where…” Naruto paused dramatically. “the canteen in this place is?”

Sasuke’s eye twitched. _The canteen?_

“I mean, I haven’t eaten in _forever!”_ Twitch. “Do you think they have ramen here? I hope they do cause Ramen is the _best_ food in the _enti~re_ world!” Another twitch. “What flavors do you think is available here? We’re near the sea right? Since its Waterfalls, do you think there’s fresh water fish too? They must have seafood themed ramen here! And oysters! It’s been a while since I’ve tasted one of those! Oh and crab! I prefer eating crab with its shell though. Do you think they’d serve a crab flavored ramen somewhere? Urchins are nice but Miso is my—”

“Naruto.” Sasuke interrupted in deceptive calm.

Naruto ignored him continued rambling and bumped into a pillar.

“You’ll run into a pillar.” Sasuke snorted. “Now everyone knows how much of an idiot you are.”

“I never _cared_ about _their—_ ” He gestured to the nobles looking at him blinkingly.  “—opinion in the first place. They could go fuck themselves while they’re at it.” He retorted carelessly while nursing a reddish nose. “Also, being serious _all the time_ isn’t good for my mental health—” A snort. _Mental health?_ “And you do it enough for me anyway.”

Sasuke pinched the bridge of his nose.

“It’s _protocol._ ”

“Meh. I’m the _Hokage_. _I_ decide whether or not protocol is needed.” He retorted childishly.

“Oh? Like ignoring the Hyuuga’s protocol about entering their compound?” Sasuke asked in false innocence.

Naruto blinked. _What?_

“I may be your guard but even I can’t defend you from _Neji_. What if I say you’ve been ah _, flashing_ , to Hinata-san’s room recently?”

Naruto flushed. “I haven’t been doing that for the last… two months!” He sputtered indignantly. Sasuke smirked as if the sentence confirmed his suspicions. Which it did. “You wouldn’t tell _him_ a lie would you? And he _knows_ it’s a lie.”

“But would that even _matter_ to him?”

“Uhh…no…” Naruto sighed defeatedly. “Fine. No more conscious obnoxiousness for the rest of the conference.”

“Good.” Sasuke agreed with the compromise.

“Don’t act like such a prude though. Everyone knows how much of a hopeless romantic you are. I really can’t believe why Sakura’s parents tolerate you around their house.” Naruto wagged his eyebrows.

“I am _not_ romantic!” He replied with a flush.

“Oh, really? I beg to differ. _Everybody_ knows about your nightly visits to Sakura-chan’s house terrace.” Naruto coughed, imitating Sasuke’s voice, not that it was decent, but enough to carry the tone. “Haha… never thought Sakura—or anyone for that matter— would be able to make the Great Uchiha Sasuke stutter!”

“Naruto!” He exclaimed, making the blonde snicker at his expense. He sent a withering glare towards the blonde and coughed, intending to change the topic _away_ from this mortifying topic, his blush only receding slightly.

“Maa, calm down. It’s your fault, you teased me about Hinata-chan first!”

“Anyway, would you mind telling me about the letter sent to us on the way here?” Sasuke steered the topic, hopefully, the blonde would have mercy. Talking about such personal stuff so out in the open was absolutely humiliating.

“Oh? What letter? I didn’t receive a letter. Nope. I didn’t.” Naruto drawled innocently, blinking deliberately slowly. Thankfully following his topic change.

Sasuke glared at him.

“What? There really wasn’t a _letter._ I received a formal _notice_.”

If looks could kill, Naruto would have been dead ten times over, had his corpse scattered throughout the Elemental Nations, disemboweled, skinned and dismembered. And no, that _really_ wasn’t an exaggeration.

“Fine.” The blonde’s smile dimmed a little. “Do you know about the World Government?” He inquired.

“World Government? No. I’ve heard bits and pieces but not enough to paint a picture. I _do_ know that the Elemental Nations isn’t the whole world yet.”

“Would you want a long winded and annoyingly boring description I needed to memorize for the meeting or just the gist of it? I know how to sum up that troublesome world in less than a hundred words.”

“The short one please.” He said after a moment’s pause.

“Hmm… Let’s see… If I remember correctly…The World Government in a few words, is a militaristic—mainly naval— governing body that has short of 200 countries under their thumb. Supposedly, Ero-Sennin went and sailed a few months off of the shores of Aku no Kuni and gathered info about the island he landed in. The difference of cultures between our lands was— _is—_ massive. It has been a while since anyone from there has visited. The last was… at the time of the Nidaime, I think, I’m not sure. We were pretty closed off… Apparently, the Sanbi—before Yagura became its Jinchuuriki— took it upon itself to ‘guard’ us from ships that sailed near the beaches of Mizu no Kuni. Ero-Sennin had heard rumors of ships trying to get past their island and never even getting a mile or two to our shore. A Giant …Sea King?” Naruto paused. “I think they called the Sanbi a Sea King… whatever that is. Anyway, they said that this island was haunted, due to the heavy mist where their ships usually approach, they put off our continent as the ‘Dead end of East Blue’.”

“That’s the reason none of them came until the end of the war…” Sasuke said lowly as if in realization.

“Yes. My knowledge about them is limited, but thanks to Ero-Sennin’s notes on the ‘Beyond the Seas’—it was corny, but it fit.”

“I heard you mentioned something about East Blue. What is it?”

“The World Government umm… governs… seven? Eight? Eight seas. North, South, East and West Blues; Two Calm Belts. And two halves of another sea called the Grand Line. I’m not exactly sure, but the person Ero-Sennin asked turned out to be some kind of old retired pirate…”

“Pirate?”

“Ah, yeah. Apparently not all pirates out there are bad… most of them have questionable morality though… Not that we’re to talk _we_ hardly have any left as ninjas. Hmm… We need to have permission from the Daimyos, but the decision mostly lands on us, seeing as the Daimyos are political figureheads at best.” He muttered the last part. “According to Ero-Sennin’s notes, The World Government believes in Absolute Justice—which sounds weird... And their Military force are called the Marines. The lower ranks could be wiped out by ‘Even _me_ when I was _genin_ _before_ my Chuunin exams’. Don’t look at me like _that_. Ero-Sennin’s notes said that at context.” He huffed. “But there are weird abilities that are given to them by weird stuff called ‘Devil Fruits’. And don’t ask. That’s all I know about it.”

“Hn…” Sasuke paused thoughtfully. “So I assume this letter is about this World Government?”

“Stating the obvious, but, yes. Some Marine officer is on his way here, ETA about half an hour or so. That’s why this recess is long. I’m not supposed to tell this to anyone outside the Conference, but you _are_ in the Conference, just as a guard. Meh, I never cared about the rules much anyway.“ He waved his hand carelessly.

Sasuke snorted. _That’s an understatement._ Then stopped walking. “I never answered your question did I?”

“The canteen?” Naruto said excitedly.

“It’s right in front of us.” And as if on cue, The blonde sniffed.

“RAMEN!!!”

“Quietly, Naruto.”

“Fine.”

The blonde sauntered happily—with Sasuke a few steps behind him, his place slower— to the canteen counter and grinned widely.

“One of every flavor of Ramen you have please!” The blonde gave his orders… loudly.

“Coming right up!” The nameless order taker replied.

Once the bowls started coming, Naruto dug in, inhaling the bowls at inhuman speed. How did he manage to _taste_ that? The stack started growing as Sasuke bit into an onigiri. The last bowl was stacked and the onigiri was finished.

“Goshisousama.”

“Sasuke, are fyou gointh ch—” _Gulp._ “—eat anything else?”

“No. I’ve already finished mine.”

“But—”

“No.”

“Then go change your clothes then. I can’t keep an ANBU around the meeting later. Everyone’s calling off their ANBUs.”

“Change? There’s no need.”

“Just go change.” Naruto said with finality.

“I didn’t bring my normal clothes with me.”

Naruto rolled his eyes at his second-in-command’s stubbornness.

“Here.” The blonde said as he tossed a scroll _at_ the Uchiha, who caught it deftly, rolling his eyes.

“You went through my clothes?” Sasuke asked annoyedly as he opened the scroll.

“Nope.” Naruto said cheekily. Sasuke breathed in relief. “My clone did though.”

“That isn’t an excuse!” Sasuke growled.

All the while glaring at Naruto, he stalked off to a direction to the right and entered a seemingly empty panel. _I win._ Naruto thought with humour..

“Namikaze-san?”

The Hokage looked to his right and saw a russet haired woman. The Mizukage.

“Ah. Mizukage-sama. To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“Nothing.” She said a matter-of-factly “I’m… merely curious about the world beyond. The other attendees said you had the most information about this World Government.”

“Curious? You should wait for the reconvention of the council.”

The nobles had already left the Conference and only the Kages were to meet with the Commander of the Marines. Now that he thought about it, the nobles seemed unnaturally tense the whole time the meeting was being conducted. The amount of restrained KI during the Conference was palpable, and he had only noticed it now, having his fair share of larger amounts of Killing intent before. Confronting the Bijuu’s monstrous KI was just the cherry on top. No wonder the nobles were uneasy. The Kages barely even registered the Killing intent focused on them. It slid off them like it was just water.

“But I’m a very impatient person. I’d rather have information prior to being entered in a negotiation.” Mei stated a-matter-of-factly.

“Well, isn’t that a bit unfair?” Naruto returned lightly, a smile flittering through his face. He glanced at the corner of his eye, catching the gazes of A, Kurotsuchi, Gaara, Temari and Darui. “The others also wish to know of this before the meeting with the representative, correct?”

A looked annoyed at being caught listening in. “Well, you know of our intention, already. Explain already damn it!” He grumbled, tapping the table impatiently, leaving noticeable indent on the low quality wood of the table.

“I, too, am interested.” Kurotsuchi stated, having been seated at the table to the far left, she stood up and walked with an unnerving quiet that would only have been achieved in war to the group.

Gaara, just behind the blond Hokage, didn’t even need to talk. He only nodded.

“Well…” Naruto stood up, stretching his arms as if he’d woke up from sleep. “Seeing as we’re all present,” He grinned at the scowling Sasuke who had just come back into the room. “They’d be here in a few minutes, so I’m keeping this short and concise.”

~*~*~*~

~*~*~*~

“—kiji. Admiral Aokiji! Wake up, sir!”

A groan.

“We’ve already docked, Admiral, sir!”

Another groan.

“I’m sorry. But you can’t just sleep through the meeting, sir.”

An eye peeked out from under an eye cover.

“Admiral Akainu has already began to leave, sir.”

Aokiji removed his eye covers and pocketed it. “Thornes, you’re dismissed.”

“I cannot be, sir. I was ordered specifically to not let you out of my sight until you actually step off the ship, sir.”

“I get it, I get it… This is so annoying…” he grumbled.

As Aokiji left the ship, rendezvousing with Akainu, someone another Marine Grunt approached Thornes.

“How the hell did you manage to understand him?” The grunt asked.

“You’re a newbie, huh?” At his nod Thornes continued. “Practice. Try being with Admiral Aokiji for as long as the rest of us have, you’ll probably be unnerved how many meanings a sleepy groan or a sigh has.” He finished it as if it was something commonplace and the other grunt would rather not.

“Thornes, Mattherton! Stop slacking and reign in the sails!”

“Yes, captain!”

~*~*~*~

~*~*~*~

“And that’s all I know.” Naruto concluded. A few moments of silence reigned in as they let the information sink in.

“We know so little…” Kurotsuchi said in concern.

“I’m curious about those Devil Fruits. Maybe…” A said, his sentence dangling.

“I don’t trust them.” Gaara said flatly. “There is too much unknown for us to just thrust in and swear ourselves blindly. I’d suggest we wait for clarifications and more information.”

“My, such a tight decision we’re forced in. But I agree with Kazekage-kun. I’d rather not be caught barehanded by forces of unknown quantity and quality.” Mei said with a sly smile. “But to them, we are almost equally if not more of an unknown. I figure this coming meeting would be _very_ fruitful.”

Almost everyone caught the underlying message that she was saying. ‘ _Look underneath the undearneath’_ after all. Only Kankuro didn’t seem to get it.

“How cryptic, Mizukage-san.” Naruto applauded quietly. “However, trust is hardly built upon kept secrets and lies. I understand your sentiments though, we won’t show our cards until they bare theirs.” He looked over to the other Kages and at their nods he continued talking.

“This is too little information to go on, but we should actually be thankful that we have even this little…” Kurotsuchi sighed.

“Maa, maa, based on Jiraiya-kun’s intel, their lower ranks are very many, but very weak.”

“I wonder if we should bring Genin as escorts instead of ANBU or Jounin?” Naruto joked lightly, prompting several chuckles from the room. But none of them would risk it.

~*~*~*~

“Uh, Temari?” Kankuro who was by the walls whispered to Temari who was beside him.

“What?” The sandy blonde prompted, in equal tones.

“What are they talking about?”

“You… didn’t get it?” Temari asked incredulously. “You are such an idiot.”

“Hey! Just because not everybody’s an ambassador doesn’t mean they’re stupid. And just answer the question!”

“Pff… It just means that the Mizukage wished to lie to the visitors about our capabilities unless they show theirs. Probably as docile little puppies who doesn’t know better. With several disparaging well placed barbs to the visitor.” Temari said offhandedly, still trying to follow the conversation

~*~*~*~

A minute or two in their pensive silence, a civilian guard opened the door, taking none of them by surprise having sensed the quaint chakra signature. “They have arrived.” He announced quietly.

“Well, then back to business.” Naruto said, his characteristic grin, not leaving his face.

~*~*~*~

Two officers wearing the now distinguishable Marine insignia on their coats entered the meeting room. The one with the hat looked ready to jump to any trouble while the other’s eyes darted lazily around to room, taking in the probable exits. (He dubbed them _Stiff_ and _Lazy_. At least until they introduced themselves.)

Naruto silently applauded their paranoia. One can never be too sure after all.

“Welcome to the Elemental Nations.” Naruto greeted jovially, making Sasuke wince at his enthusiasm. “We have been expecting you.”

“The natives have been very… welcoming.” Stiff said warily.

“Welcoming? In what manner?” the blonde asked concernedly. The other Kages agreed to have the blonde handle the visitor, with his natural charisma, it would most likely end better. Sasuke agreed with their logic. Hell, the blonde even got through to the equally stubborn _Neji._

“We were seized when we docked and one of our sails caught fire.” Lazy drawled, reminiscent of Shikamaru’s sloth-like personality.

“Ah.” Mei’s eyes widened a fraction. “I don’t suppose he wielded a sword that emits blue fire now?” It was one of the legendary swords of the Seven Ninja Swordsman of Kiri which was more than a little ironic considering that it wielded _fire_ instead of the usual water. It was created in the Land of _Water_ after all.

“He did.” Stiff confirmed.

The Mizukage’s eyes were hidden with her bangs, suddenly gaining a threatening aura then smiled a little too sweetly. “I’ll have him punished when he returns. _Death_ , even.” He pitied poor Kiro. No one (except Madara and Obito) deserved her wrath. It reminded Naruto of one of the saying Jiraiya often told him : ‘ _Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned._ ’

“Mizukage-san! Isn’t that a bit too excessive?” The Hokage protested.

“As much amusement this causes me,” Gaara started. “It would be best to end this, correct?”

Stiff’s eyes narrowed. “Introductions then. My designated name is Admiral Akainu, a marine.” So Stiff finally introduces himself.

 _Yawn_. “Admiral Aokiji, Marine.”

“Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto, Rokudaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato.” Naruto stated proudly.

“Killer A, Yondaime Raikage of Kumogakure no Sato.” A said exasperatedly.

“Terumi Mei, Godaime Mizukage of Kirigakure no Sato.” Mei said with a wink, somehow unnerving the two Admirals as she’d been throwing death sentences only minutes ago.

“Sabaku no Gaara, Godaime Kazekage, Sunagakure no Sato.” Gaara introduced with his characteristic monotone.

“Kurotsuchi, Yondaime Tsuchikage of Iwagakure no Sato.” Kurotsuchi sain with a cocky grin.

“…as much as I think your titles are important, we still don’t know of its _significance_. Leaders of several… villages?” Akainu said.

“Ah, yes. Explanation from both sides are in order? Good. We’d like to know about your… government.” Kurotsuchi started cordially.

~*~*~*~

 


	2. Chapter 2

_Do we really even have to be here?_ Aokiji thought balefully.

The people seemed negotiable enough, despite the very—ah— _scorching_ welcome. He could feel their hesitancy towards joining the World Government, but based on recent intel, this archipelago had people who were capable of inhuman feats that weren't made possible by Devil Fruits. These 'Kages' were supposed to be the most powerful bunch on this island and they had their oddities, but strong people usually had them, him and Sakazuki were no exceptions. Though, he had to admit, He really just wanted to sleep. Really.

He yawned as his eyes roved over the occupants of the room.

There was a U-shaped table in the center of the room and the Ninja Leaders were sitting equally distanced from each other. Aokiji hid his suspicions that they were ready to jump into battle anytime, but so were they. They didn’t become Admirals for nothing.

The two Admirals—thank goodness that Kizaru wasn't here, else he risk his near nonexistent sanity— sat on the open end with a table in front of them. From left to right, was The 'Tsuchikage', The 'Raikage', The 'Hokage', The 'Kazekage' and The 'Mizukage' and each had a single bodyguard behind them. (Akatsuchi, Darui, Sasuke, Temari and Chojuro respectively if he remembered correctly. There were still several others outside the room, but it seemed that they weren't going to enter anytime soon, merely satisfied—or ordered to—patrol their area.) They had their own, several Devil Fruit users who he never really ever tried to talk to.

The discussion had been very informative, but it was concerning that there had been a threat to put the whole world to into an endless illusion. They never even heard about even the slightest implication that there had been a war for the whole world's freedom. Why, if the dates were correct, he had been lounging in one of Water 7's well known spas when the war had reached its climax. Doing nothing productive while the world’s free will was about to be robbed was… irritating and infuriating.

The Elemental Nations was a curious place. Shinobi were widespread and their abilities, while admittedly interesting—after all, walking on walls and water was truly unbelievable, until it was proven in front of their very eyes— would serve not to benefit the marines in the near future, as it had been said that if a human was to not hone their ‘chakra systems’ before having them close up entirely (which would happen around the early teens), it would be unable to truly used unless the chakra system was transplanted. They hadn’t elaborated on what the possibilities about this energy, and Aokiji knew they were certainly doing it on purpose. They were underestimating him… or maybe they were just cautious about this. It was probable since they had only finished with the war.

"...the reconstruction has just finished, and the Elemental Nations would most probably continue its present movements." The blonde—Naruto— concluded with an ardently satisfied smile.

However, there were others who were dissatisfied with the lack of information regarding the other. Couldn’t they just get along and just… give the information without such bothersome things like politics? He was about to voice his opinion when a silent glance from Sakazuki stopped him. _Don’t you dare._ Well. Sure. Whatever floated his boat.

"The political status information exchange is finished, but you haven't even touched on your superhuman abilities." Akainu said, his voice as gruff as ever. “It would be best if we kept this informative.”

"Pot, kettle. We would also wish to know of your abilities." The Tsuchikage rebutted with little to no hesitation.

"As to why Akainu-san's body temperature is higher than most humans by more than several degrees? Excessive, isn't it? And..." The Mizukage said, calmly amused. ",the other way around for the frosty Aokiji-san?"

"Drat! I was supposed to say that!" Kurotsuchi scowled. Mei sent her a wink. The Tsuchikage sent the Mizukage a withering glare.

Aokiji had to admit, they were perceptive. He hardly felt his own temperature drop when he ate the fruit, of course, he was a little distracted with his newfound powers, but he had only noticed it himself when water started condensing on his skin. And they were here, not even having the chance to even graze the Admiral's skin to know that he was colder than most people. He looked at the other Admiral, and it seemed he was having similar thoughts. The moment their trained eyes had caught the two Marine's figures, they had been calculating, the friendly blonde was of no exception. He was merely… less obvious than the others.

"Our abilities are... varied. A demonstration, then?" Kurotsuchi said off handedly, leaning forward with a conceited smirk on her face. Of course, seeing their techniques once was hardly going to be devastating to the demonstrator, as even if you know how it is executed, it isn’t likely that you’d be able to counter it immediately.

"A spar?" Naruto asked excitedly.

"No." A growled out. "This place needs no additional damage." He said irritatedly, having been scolded by Mabui a few minutes ago for breaking a chair.

Kurotsuchi snickered. "Got told off again, eh Jiji?"

"Oh, shut up brat. _You_ try getting scolded by that woman. I doubt you'll live."

"Mabui-san is very nice to _me_." Naruto commented, grinning.

"You have Sakura to worry about, Hokage-sama." That 'Sasuke' reminded him. Aokiji blinked. Had the Hokage... shuddered? The Hokage was scared? Weren't the strongest ninjas here? Why was he...

"Don't worry, Admiral-san." The Mizukage whispered. "That 'Sakura' is a nineteen year old that can shatter boulders with a finger and mountains with a punch. He has every right to be scared."

He heard Akainu breathe out, "Haki?"

Naruto's ears perked "'Haki'? I think I've heard of that before..."

"Yes." Akainu said, regaining his disbelief that a little girl could manage haki. "Do you use haki here?"

"Uhm, no. We use something called chakra—as we’ve said before. She's pretty much the only person who can pull that off, though. Excluding the person who taught her of course."

"So young..." Akainu said in disbelief. Naruto and the others just laughed— some more obnoxious than the others. "I'm a few months _younger_ than her, you know." The blonde said lightly. Their eyes widened fractionally. If Akainu had understood correctly, then their positions were like an Admiral of their own military villages. "The only people here above twenty is Raikage-sama and Mizukage-sama. Kazekage-sama is even younger than me." Mei glared at him briefly, her eyes promising pain.

"What..." They shared looks of disbelief.

"Don't tell us it's inhumane." Kurotsuchi said skeptically, rising from her chair and deciding to lounge on the table with her legs dangling carelessly on the side. "We've been ninjas ever since we were ten. The life expectancy of ninjas is low. So we make the best of our time."

"The youngest to become a full fledged ninja was four." Naruto quipped, his grin screamed mischief.

"But if you live through forty, you're bound to last long. Longer than even _civilians_." A commented, spitting out ‘civilians’ as if they were distasteful. Well, they _were,_ Aokiji agreed.. In war that was.

"Are you looking down at us because we are young?" Gaara asked, his gourd's cork slightly squeaking free. Naruto gave him a warning glance. Gaara ignored him.

"Nothing of the sort." Akainu placated. The ice user yawned, unconcerned of their ages. "I was merely surprised."

"I believe you." Naruto said— with little hesitation— with a warm smile gracing his features. Gaara sighed, replacing his gourd's cork. _You wouldn’t._ Naruto just smiled cheekily. Such an impulsive, stupid, bullheaded, rash move would probably not end well. Not end well at all.

"...You do?" Akainu raised an eyebrow.

"Of course! Why, you believe us so much that you want to fight us to prove we can handle ourselves, right?" Naruto's eyes glinted dangerously.

A raised his finger up to point at the Hokage. "If this goes awry, you'll tell Mabui that you did all the damage."

"Of course. I'll make sure it doesn't." Naruto nodded, promising with a smile.

"Are you underestimating me?" Akainu asked, infuriated, the floorboards by his feet nearly going through the wood if not for Aokiji freezing his feet.

"Calm down. You're rising to their bait. And this is good for our second objective."

Akainu frowned, but resigned himself to. If the Fire's Shadow wished to play with fire, then so be it. He'd be burned badly until all that was left was ashes to be scattered to the winds.

.

~*~*~*~

.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Aokiji asked, sounding barely concerned.

They were in a wide clearing, lined by trees. There was a hill that the other ninjas and Admiral had sat on, around twenty to thirty meters away from the center. Usually, when Sakazuki fought, the whole battleground would be filled with lava, this distance was hardly going to matter. The immediate landscape would be reduced to molten stone and/or to ashes and the enemy would either live with a gaping hole in their chest or permanently burned off limbs.

"You shouldn't worry about that brat." A said lowly. "He's... definitely strong."

"You do not know how Akainu fights." Aokiji drawled. "He'll most likely burn that blonde to ashes. Probably let off with a few melted bones."

"So, he's a user of fire?" The Mizukage inquired amusedly. "Well then, we've no problem. He… _specializes_ in fighting fire users." Terumi said unconcernedly, choosing to watch the unfolding banter.

"...specializes?"

"Yes." Gaara said with no intentions of explaining.

Aokiji sighed.

Sasuke sent him a smirk.

.

~*~*~*~

.

"You're an Admiral? You stiff old man? You’re even stiffer than some of the elders from back home and that’s saying something!" Naruto taunted.

"You're a village leader, you undisciplined brat?" Akainu retorted.

"I think I'm disciplined enough to lead a village. I have been for most of the year already, after all; and I haven't brought the village to ruins yet." He said brightly as if it was something trivial in joked about.

Akainu sent him an empty stare. “Military is supposed to follow protocol.”

"Well, I also think you're a forgetful old worm that would wriggle and dance when sprinkled with salt. Let's see who wins in the end, eh?"

Akainu glared. "I won't be responsible if you die brat."

"Ha! As if old man." Naruto said with a grin as he leapt backward. He slowly drew out an odd tri-pointed knife, from his pouch under his coat, grinned even wider and threw said kunai at the Admiral. Akainu raised an eyebrow, questioning his use of a simple knife when he saw the kunai glow a pale blue and multiply to almost hundreds if not thousands of knives. Akainu didn't flinch. He calmly deflected some of them with his bare hands—coating it with very little haki, wincing every now and then. It wouldn’t do if he went all out would it?

"Kunai. Kage Bunshin no Jutsu." The blonde whispered, eying the battlefield with satisfaction, going back to his relaxed position.

Aokiji wondered how the Hokage would be able to fight a Logia type Devil fruit user when Haki wasn't even practiced in this part of the world. He was pretty sure Akainu would win because of his body's special properties.

"Maa, maa." Naruto said annoyedly as he spotted one of the Hiraishin kunai clones poof out of existence when it was deflected. "Your body isn't normal, is it Aka-Inu-san?" He said distastefully. "Ah, a bloodlimit perhaps?"

"I ate the Magu Magu no Mi. It lets me turn and control molten, embered rock."

Naruto gave him a disbelieving stare. "You... are serious?"

"Of course."

"No, I mean, do you really give out your abilities before you fight?" Naruto asked wide eyed, but the dangerous glint in his eyes never left.

"It's honor. Hmph. You'll lose regardless. Hardly anyone stands a chance against me."

"How very arrogant Mr. Lava Man." Naruto applauded tauntingly. "As you can see," He said grandly, gesturing around him. "The field has been set for my— ah—convenience. And you don’t know any of my own techiniques. Ah, how fortunate. And I am not as honorable as you. I am a shinobi… We do not have… _honor._ " A smirk.

Back to the hill, Aokiji was eying the field in apprehension.

"Setting up the field? What do those do?" Aokiji asked, as Akainu was most likely thinking the same even as the two engaged in a physical match. Naruto was moving as effortlessly as Akainu was, but it was apparent that the more recent war veteran was more cautious than the other. Though, he could tell that they were holding back plenty, since the other Admiral had used neither haki nor his fruit, he was curious though. The blonde didn’t look much, if you disregarded the way he held himself. It was obvious by his movements and the way his eyes swept through the battlefield in quick but successive estimations that he knew what he was doing, his assured posture that he was unlikely to lose but still with enough wariness was making Aokiji curious.

Kurotsuchi smiled dangerously. "I keep forgetting you aren't from here. Most shinobi would cower in the sight of those 'knives' we call them kunai—that is specifically called a Hiraishin kunai. The first user of that technique slaughtered more than half a thousand capable ninjas within minutes— seconds even." She said scathingly. Aokiji’s brain went on overdrive, a technique for downing more than enough people for a battalion?

The Namikaze's ears perked, hearing Kurotsuchi's offended voice. "Don't worry, Tsuchikage-sama. Those are merely escape options." Naruto said with a reassuring grin. "I won't show it just for the sake of showing off."

"That's not what I'm worried about, blondie." She huffed, but smiled nonetheless.

Akainu was starting to get annoyed. Why not release his whole arsenal? He could take any hits from this kid. Ninja or not. He was respected in the seas as one of the strongest Admirals— if not the strongest.

"Tsunade-chan has finally managed your unnecessary showing off, Namikaze-kun?" Mei called somewhat loudly.

"Nah. I managed it all on my own." Naruto said shamelessly, dodging a punch.

"Really? I remember putting you under a Tsukiyomi, idiot. By the request of the fifth of course." Sasuke muttered lowly, knowing that with his enhanced senses, the blonde could most definitely hear him.

Naruto blanched, face paling as he narrowly avoided a flaming kick. "Yeah, yeah. That was certainly traumatizing. Though, why did you have to use such a cruel method? Fangirls, really Sasuke? Though, how about, we talk later?" He said with a fleeting smile. "It seems Mr Stiff has finally shown some of his abilities."

Sasuke snorted lightly his eyes observing the others from the corners of his eyes with a flash of red. Gaara had been concentrating on the match nearly single mindedly, having only his vibrating sand as indications that he was still aware of his surroundings.

"Has it become interesting yet?" A asked gruffly, having only arrived.

"Maa, you should've brought C or Samui instead. They're better than me at sensing." Darui drawled.

"But you're still a sensor, correct? Start so you may describe how it looks after the fight." Gaara more or less ordered him. A sent a him a look that screamed 'comply!'.

Darui sighed, knowing the stream of D-ranks bound to be assigned to him if he didn't. Forming a ram handsign, he frowned, committing every single oddity to memory.

.

~*~*~*~

.

Naruto just kept on dodging, smiling all the way, increasing his opponents’ frustration at not being able to hit its intended target. The blonde's eyes were a different matter though, it was wary, darting around restlessly, but completely calculating. He did a quick shuffle, not risking touching the other man. He had become one of the most agile and fast people in the entirety of the Elemental Nations as Madara, Obito and that crazy lady who called herself Hagoromo had been exponentially faster than he had ever been without his Jinchuuriki Modes. Kurama refused to help him all the time so he was stuck to doing speed training with a very workaholic Lee and a very devoted Neji and the chakra he reaceived from Ashura.

“Maa, you’re getting a little hotheaded, Akainu-kun.” He taunted. “Getting irritated already?”

“Stay still!”

“Nah. That seems painful. I’d rather not experience third degree burns anytime soon.”

“Retaliate! I do not want such an infuriating fight!”

“I still haven’t figured out how to…” Naruto smiled as he caught the Mizukage’s figure, who smiled back at him. “Maybe... I have. Though I lack practice with this element, here goes.”

The Rokudaime coated his fists with dense water shrouds and aimed a punch at his right shoulder joints, making his enemy release a grunt in the sudden offense. Akainu was however, unharmed, his upper right shoulder was coated in a shiny blackish thing that probably absorbed most of the impact. His hand turned black as well, grasping at the Hokage’s hand that was used to punch him and throwing him to the ground, locking his hands behind him.

“Surrender.” Akainu breathed, his Haki still slightly coating his body. His other fist flaming in a way that made 'blop-blop' sounds.

“No need to grasp at my wrists so tightly, Magu-san. Fine, I forfeit.” Naruto said disarmingly, eyeing the fist critically.

“You’re all talk.” Akainu said disappointedly. “I was rather looking forward to a match worth my time.”

“Tsk.” Naruto said with a grin, shifting his sore muscles from the uncomfortable position, and not even glancing at his sore wrist. “That was a pretty nice dodging exercise. I definitely need more speed training.”

Akainu glared at him scathingly. "Of course you would have held back." He grumbled.

"Not that you actually even tried to kill me." Naruto retorted, “I actually envy your restraint. I can't hold back without making fun of my enemy and nearly getting skewered."

Then smirked. "Thank you for the spar." He disappeared in a flash of yellow, reappearing only a few feet of his previous position.

Akainu blinked, finding the sudden loss of contact unsurprising.

"You can teleport." He said flatly.

"Of course I could." Naruto said with a raised eyebrow. "Didn't you... Oh... _Yeah._ You aren't from here."

"Is this supposed to be common knowledge here?"

"Uh, yeah."

"This getting old." Kurotsuchi complained as she jumped from her high perch. "Would you stop bickering like children?"

"No need to be so uptight, Tsuchikage-sama." Naruto grinned while he sent Sasuke a pointed glance. The latter nodded imperceptibly.

"I didn't think you would manage to hold back." Aokiji drawled.

"I have more continence than you give me credit for." He said curtly.

"So, any comments?" Naruto inquired.

“It was enlightening.” They both heard from behind them. Naruto sighed, taking in the images of his fellow leaders.

“Enlightening? How?” Naruto asked deceptively cluelessly, tilting his head slightly. "Explain, please. I couldn't hear your voices down here, with all the dodging I did."

"Dodge was _all_ you did." Akainu grumbled, but was ignored with a grin.

"Nothing much. Just that they're more than enough powerful to annihilate several battalions of chuunins."  A gruffed out. Aokiji felt he was making a mockery of their skills. Whatever chuunin were, it seemed they weren't that high up on the food chain.

"Oh, don't underestimate them, Raikage-sama. They also have nifty abilities that we definitely haven't seen." Mei chastised.

“It seems both parties are still unsatisfied and neither is willing to part with more information…” Naruto stated. “We would like to have a chance to judge the World Government ourselves.”

“We would agree. If you give us the same privileges.” Akainu gruffed out.

“Need we to remind you that we’re ninjas?” Mei smiled as her voice pleasantly washed away any complaints. “We excel at _stealth_ and _keeping information._  We highly doubt that you would be able to gather much from our countries if you _do_ stay here. Of course… we _would_ appreciate the _company_.”

“Shut your trap, Terumi.” Kurotsuchi ground out. “You’re starting to flirt.”

“Ara? I am? Well, I didn’t mean it.” She smiled even more. Naruto thought she was rather… unapologetic.

“We won’t be the ones to stay. We have our responsibilities after all.” Aokiji drawled, earning a sharp glance from Akainu. “We have several of our subordinates do the job for us. It wouldn’t matter much if we wasted those people’s time.”

Everyone felt a little thrown off by his statement. _Not even an ounce on diplomacy there._

“And, I don’t really care if I give out information. No orders from above told us to keep information after all. It’s just Saka—Akainu who pulled his punches. The world—”

“Aokiji.”

“Government had—”

“ _Aokiji._ ”

“Fine, fine. Can I go back to the ship now?” He yawned. Naruto smiled at his nonchalance. He had to be powerful to be able to undermine another Admiral’s orders without immediate repercussions.

“I’ll be coming with you.” Akainu stated and turned to the Kages. “We would like to know if you accept the alliance under the World Government.”

“We _don’t_ have a decision. Do your superiors demand it to be immediate?” Naruto replied unhesitatingly.

“No. We’re merely offering.”

“Then we would like to postpone it as much as possible.”

Akainu’s eyes narrowed in suspicion.

“We aren’t going to decline if there’s no reason to. We already know the benefits and obligations a country under the WG has. We can’t come to a consensus yet.” Gaara stated. “It would be rash as we’re still recovering from the recent war.”

“Then this is what we’ll report.” Aokiji replied, his eyes half lidded as they always were. “We don’t need to stay any longer right?”

Akainu sighed. “Yes.”

Then they left without another word.

.

~*~*~


End file.
